Power plant request bound for San Diego City Council

The developer of a proposed power plant within San Diego city limits west of Santee is taking its request for a land-use change to the City Council, after the planning commission declined to hear the application.

The Quail Bush power plant is being developed by Cogentrix Energy, a subsidiary of investment bank Goldman Sachs. San Diego Gas & Electric has an agreement to buy power from the natural gas-fired plant.

Lori Ziebart, the project manager for Quail Brush, said an appeal will be made to the city council after the planning commission voted 4-1 against considering whether to re-designate the 22-acre site for industrial use.

The California Energy Commission, the state's permitting authority for power plants, could ultimately overrule a local decision not to re-zone the project area, which is currently designated as open space.

SDG&E says Quail Brush, along with new generators in Escondido and Otay Mesa, is crucial to meeting the region's future energy needs and needed to balance out fluctuating power from future solar and wind farms.

Opponents of the project dispute that assessment and object to locating the project immediately across Mt. Soledad Freeway from Mission Trails Regional Park, among other concerns. The location has ready access to electrical transmission and natural gas infrastructure.

State utilities regulators currently are considering an application that would pass the costs for the plant on to SDG&E customers.

The City Council is unlikely to hear the Quail Brush matter before September. The power plant would be located south of the Sycamore Landfill and north of State Route 52.